An Immigrant

CHAPTER 1 – CARVED LIKE A THANKSGIVING TURKEY

CHAPTER 1 – CARVED LIKE A THANKSGIVING TURKEY

‘ Bad move, Victor boy, ’ Victor thought, glancing around him with his blue, sharp eyes, searching the surrounding shadows.

Unease whirled inside his chest, and he rubbed his fingers unconsciously. He was itching for a cigarette and in a bad way. He had decided to quit, but his resolve was challenged once more. His job didn’t make quitting easy.

He had a bad feeling. It had been bothering him since he accepted the rendezvous with the so-called informant in the Music Garden. His eyes swept the grove again.

‘ Not a smart spot for a clandestine meeting ,’ he mused, looking around with apprehension. ‘ Especially not so close to midnight and at the Sarabande ,’ Victor shook his head, displeased with his lack of foresight. ‘ I should have insisted to meet at the Prelude or Minuets ,’ he repeated for the tenth time that day.

The Sarabande, majestic in daylight, looked gloomy at night. The anemic moonlight, barely penetrating the thick and heavy clouds, didn’t help at all.

The weather man had announced rain, but Victor had stopped counting on his accuracy for a long time. The weather channel had been announcing thunderstorms for the last three days.

Victor still had to see a rain drop or hear the thunder. Following one of the hottest summers on record, that late September was scorching, and he would have welcomed a little rain.

Victor leaned on the closest tree and patted his pocket, where he had stashed a recorder. He knew his source wouldn’t have liked to know he intended to record his accounting, but Victor couldn’t care less. He paid for that information, and if he paid, he understood to take full advantage and use it as he found fit.

Restless, he kept his eyes and ears open. He knew his impatience to solve the case had made him overlook some elementary cautious measures. Now, he had to compensate, if he wanted to keep his hide intact.

‘ One mistake, one step closer to the grave. Things won’t always go your way, Victor boy ,’ he thought. ‘ I’m far too old for taking such stupid risks . Heck, I’m far too old for this crap, ’ he chided himself, just one second before he heard a c***k somewhere on the right.

He had just turned his head toward the noise when a strong arm shoved a knife into his back. Victor groaned and fell to the ground like a log. A strapping man, over six feet tall, and around 220 pounds, his fall felt like a small earthquake.

‘ Now, I’m done, ’ he thought, his brain on fire, pain churning in his belly and chest. ‘ Carved, just like a Thanksgiving turkey, ’ he observed with bitterness.

His fingers knotted in the leaves on the ground. He felt grateful when the sound of receding steps reached his ears. At least no one was pressed to finish him off on the spot. Then, he passed out.

***

Leah burrowed more into Axel, as if she wanted to steal his heat, although it was warm enough, even with the balcony door open. His arms surrounded her, and his head rested on top of hers. Axel’s lips brushed absently over her hair now and then.

She felt comfortable, cherished and, quite strangely, protected. ‘ What the heck! I don’t need protection, do I? ’ she wondered, a slight feminist streak showing its head.

Leah had lost count of the evenings and nights she had spent with Axel. Days had turned into weeks and weeks into months. Well, about two or three months, give or take a week or two.

The movie on TV didn’t hold Leah’s interest, but Axel’s scent and heat did. She closed her eyes, breathed him in, just content to be in his arms.

Axel’s thoughts didn’t overwhelm her mind. Now, she found that restful. In the beginning, that bothered her, but not for long.

It was quite a change of pace not to pick on random thoughts from someone she dated. More often than not, those thoughts had had the gift to sour her mood.

With Axel, the unknown exhilarated her. She had to guess what he wanted. She didn’t know what he thought when he looked at her. That kept her on her toes, and she became more attuned to him.

Despite the action on the TV screen and the explosions blazing through the speakers, Leah fell asleep in Axel’s arms, her head on his chest. Her fingers burrowed beneath his shirt, as if she wanted to get closer, and Axel grinned, leaning back to see her face.

One by one, Axel had broken down all Leah’s defense walls. It hadn’t been easy. Not for the first time, he wondered if he shouldn’t thank that wacko woman who had stabbed him. Leah had cared for him afterward, and that counted for something.

Axel leaned his chin on the top of Leah’s head once more, and returned his eyes to the movie. Leah amused him. She had chosen a very b****y and noisy film, and yet, she had fallen asleep.

Her even breathing relaxed him and Axel stroked her arm and shoulder with tender touches. His mind wandered away, lulled by the lack of tension.

Suddenly, he gasped and his arms tightened around Leah’s body. She woke up wincing.

“ What’s wrong, Axel?” she asked when her eyes met his fixed gaze.

Axel appeared to stare into space.

“ What’s wrong?” she asked again, and this time, she also shook him for good measure.

Axel blinked and glanced at her. He brushed his fingers on the side of her face.

“ We have to go now, Leah,” he said with sadness.

“ Go where?” she asked, her eyes showing her confusion. “What happened?”

“ Someone might die,” Axel replied very matter-of-factly.

Leah’s eyes widened and her lips parted in surprise.

“ Now?” she asked in a loud whisper.

Axel just nodded.